Method and device for producing packs having shrink film

ABSTRACT

For the production of packs ( 10 ) with an outer wrapper made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, the packs ( 10 ) pass through a plurality of processing stations, for sealing and/or shrink-wrapping purposes, individually and at a distance apart from one another in cyclic fashion. In an assembly station ( 40 ), units made up of a plurality of, in particular four, packs ( 10 ) are combined to form a functional unit and, thereafter, are transported in an appropriate conveying cycle and processed simultaneously in the region of operating stations.

STATEMENT OF RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application claims the benefit of International Patent Application No. PCT/EP2012/005125 having an International Filing Date of 12 Dec. 2012, which claims the benefit of German Patent Application No. 10 2011 122 327.8 having a filing date of 23 Dec. 2011.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The invention relates to a method of producing packs having an outer wrapper made of shrink-wrapping film, namely, a method of producing (cuboidal) packs having an outer wrapper made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, in particular a cigarette pack of the hinge-lid-box type, wherein folding flaps of the outer wrapper are connected to one another by thermal tacking and (subsequent) sealing and the outer wrapper is subjected to shrink-wrapping treatment by in particular surface-area heat-discharging mechanisms in the region of mutually opposite surfaces or walls of the pack or outer wrapper—in the case of a hinge-lid box (for cigarettes) a front wall and rear wall, on the one hand, and (upright) side walls, on the other hand—characterized in that surfaces of the packs or walls of the outer wrapper are subjected individually or in pairs, simultaneously or one after the other, to heat and pressure for sealing purposes and/or shrink-wrapping treatment, wherein some walls of the outer wrapper are subjected to a sealing treatment using heat and pressure and the other walls of the outer wrapper are subjected—approximately—at the same time to heat and pressure for shrink-wrapping treatment. The invention also concerns an apparatus for implementing the method.

2. Prior Art

Packs made of in particular thin cardboard and an outer wrapper made of film are subjected, providing the film has appropriate technical suitability for such a purpose, to a shrink-wrapping treatment in order that the pack is enclosed in a smooth and crease-free manner, under tensioning, by the film. The focus here is on (cigarette) packs of the hinge-lid-box type having such an outer wrapper.

It is known to combine the shrink-wrapping treatment of the outer wrapper—by means of plate-like heat-discharging mechanisms—with the sealing of folding flaps of the outer wrappers. The procedure here is such that the film, folded in the form of a flexible tube around the pack, is tacked, that is to say sealed thermally, but using small-surface-area tacking mechanisms, in the region of flexible-tube or lateral longitudinal flaps. Thereafter, laterally directed end and base flaps are folded and likewise tacked. This is followed by the final sealing of the flexible-tube flaps and, thereafter, by the sealing of the sideways directed end and base flaps in the region of a sealing station. Immediately following this, the packs are guided through a shrink-wrapping station, in the region of which the upwardly and downwardly directed large-surface-area pack sides—front wall and rear wall of the outer wrapper—are subjected, by plate-like heat-discharging mechanisms, to heat measured out for the shrink-wrapping process (EP 1 103 465 A1).

The transportation of individual packs at a distance apart from one another by belts which have interacting crosspieces for the packs is known from EP 2 019 783 B1. In the case of this prior art, the packs are transported, in the first instance, through a sealing station, which serves exclusively for sealing sideways directed pack surfaces having folding flaps. This is followed by a shrink-wrapping treatment by means of heat-discharging plates arranged above and beneath the movement path. Of interest here is the transfer of the packs from a lower belt to an upper belt, and vice versa.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns the further development of such production process, in particular in terms of ensuring that the folding flaps are sealed in a manner which is satisfactory from a technical and quality point of view and, furthermore, the provision is made for an optimum shrink-wrapping treatment, to be precise with increased output capacity of the (packaging) machine and shorter cycle times brought about as a result.

In order to achieve this object, the method according to the invention is characterized by a method of producing (cuboidal) packs having an outer wrapper made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, in particular a cigarette pack of the hinge-lid-box type, wherein folding flaps of the outer wrapper are connected to one another by thermal tacking and (subsequent) sealing and the outer wrapper is subjected to shrink-wrapping treatment by in particular surface-area heat-discharging mechanisms in the region of mutually opposite surfaces or walls of the pack or outer wrapper—in the case of a hinge-lid box (for cigarettes) a front wall and rear wall, on the one hand, and (upright) side walls, on the other hand—characterized in that surfaces of the packs or walls of the outer wrapper are subjected individually or in pairs, simultaneously or one after the other, to heat and pressure for sealing purposes and/or shrink-wrapping treatment, wherein some walls of the outer wrapper are subjected to a sealing treatment using heat and pressure and the other walls of the outer wrapper are subjected—approximately—at the same time to heat and pressure for shrink-wrapping treatment.

Accordingly, a core of the invention resides in the fact that all the surfaces or walls of the outer wrapper, but at least the front wall and rear wall, on the one hand, and narrow (upright) side walls, on the other hand, are subjected to a shrink-wrapping treatment. The shrink-wrapping operation, that is to say the surface-area feed of shrink-wrapping temperature, is combined with the thermal sealing of the folding flaps, to be precise in particular in conjunction with preceding tacking of the folding flaps prior to final sealing. The sealing and shrink-wrapping operations are carried out, according to the invention, in a number of steps, even simultaneously in respect of pack surfaces which are directed transversely in relation to one another.

A further special feature is the increase in output of the apparatus, based on packs being fed individually, one after the other, preferably at a distance apart from one another and on cyclic movement. In order to allow a relatively long processing phase along with short cycle times, a plurality of (successive) packs are transported together, in the form of a conveying unit, in a conveying cycle. Also important here is the fact that the pack units are moved transversely in relation to the supply direction, that is to say in particular upward, and, in the process, are transported in cyclic fashion through a plurality of processing stations arranged one above the other.

The apparatus according to the invention comprises folding mechanisms for the outer wrapper, tacking stations, sealing stations and shrink-wrapping subassemblies. According to the invention, these are no longer arranged, and active, in the order which has been customary up until now. A first shrink-wrapping process follows the tacking of the folding flaps. It is important here for sealing jaws, on the one hand, and also (plate-like) heating mechanisms for the shrink-wrapping treatment to be active in the same station, but to be active on different surfaces or walls of the outer wrapper, said surfaces or walls being directed in particular at an angle of 90° in relation to one another.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further details of the method and of the apparatus will be explained more specifically hereinbelow with reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration, as seen in perspective, of the apparatus as a whole,

FIG. 2 shows a detail of the apparatus according to FIG. 1, essentially an illustration of the movement sequence of the packs,

FIG. 3 shows, on an enlarged scale, a likewise perspective view of a first region of the apparatus, as seen in the direction of production,

FIG. 4 shows, on an enlarged scale, a perspective view of a sealing and shrink-wrapping unit in the form of part of the apparatus,

FIG. 5 shows a likewise perspective view of a portion of the apparatus assigned to the end of the production process,

FIG. 6 shows, on an enlarged scale, a cross section VI-VI from FIG. 3,

FIG. 7 shows, likewise on an enlarged scale, a transversely directed vertical section through the unit according to FIG. 4 taken along section plane VII-VII,

FIG. 8 shows a vertical section VIII-VIII from FIG. 4,

FIG. 9 shows, on an enlarged scale, a vertical cross section IX-IX from FIG. 5,

FIG. 10 shows a further cross section X-X from FIG. 5,

FIG. 11 shows a cross section XI-XI from FIG. 5,

FIG. 12 shows an illustration essentially analogous to FIG. 1, but concerning a modified embodiment,

FIG. 13 shows a longitudinal section XIII-XIII from FIG. 12,

FIG. 14 shows a corresponding longitudinal section XIV-XIV from FIG. 12, and

FIG. 15 shows a perspective illustration of a (cigarette) pack of the hinge-lid-box type.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The examples illustrated in the drawings refer to the treatment of cuboidal packs 10 made of comparatively stiff packaging material, in particular made of (thin) cardboard. The specific example relates to (cigarettes) packs 10 configured in the form of a hinge-lid box or hinge-lid pack. The pack is enclosed on all sides by an outer wrapper 11 made of film which can be sealed thermally—in the region of folding flaps—and can be shrink-wrapped by the feed of heat (shrink-wrapping film).

A blank of the outer wrapper 11 is folded around the pack 10 or hinge-lid box to produce a (large-surface-area) front wall 12, a corresponding rear wall 13, narrow, upright side walls 14, 15 and an end wall 16 and base wall 17. The outer wrapper 11 is folded to produce folding flaps which overlap one another (partially) on one side wall 15, that is to say flexible-tube flaps 18. The end wall 16 and base wall 17 are provided with complex folding arrangements (envelope folding arrangement), with trapezoidal closure flaps 19 being formed in the process. The outer wrapper 11 has an opening aid, that is to say a tear-open strip 20 running all the way round. The folding flaps 18, 19 are connected to one another by thermal sealing.

The apparatus shown schematically in FIG. 1 is part of an installation for producing (cigarettes) packs 10. The latter are transported along a horizontal, essentially rectilinear pack path. The latter is subdivided into portions, that is to say into path portions 21, 22 which run in the same direction in (vertically) offset planes.

The packs 10 coming from a packing machine and, with the exception of the outer wrapper 11, completed are fed in cyclic fashion and at a distance apart from one another to a folding apparatus, that is to say a folding turret 23, via an intermediate conveyor. Said folding turret is preferably designed in a manner analogous to the folding turret of EP 1 103 465 A1. In the region of the folding turret 23, in particular the flexible-tube flaps 18 are formed and fixed in tacking fashion by tacking mechanisms 24 (connecting the folding flaps by means of small sealing surfaces). The folding turret 23 is provided with three successive (different) tacking mechanisms 24.

Following the folding turret 23, the packs 10 pass into a first region of the path portion 21. Transportation takes place by an endless belt, that is to say lower belt 25, which is expediently designed in accordance with EP 2 019 783 B1, that is to say with special drivers 26, 27 which grip, and thus fix precisely, each pack 10 on the front side—side wall 14 with flexible-tube flaps 18—and on the rear side—side wall 15.

Following the folding turret 23, the packs are transported through a folding route of the path portion 21 in order for the closure flaps 19 to be produced. For this purpose, folding diverters 28 of known construction are arranged laterally alongside the belt 25, said folding diverters forming the folding flaps 19 during transportation. With the outer wrapper 11 folded to completion, the packs 10 pass into the region of a further operating station, that is to say a tacking and shrink-wrapping station 29. A first tacking mechanism, that is to say a tacking jaw 30, is positioned laterally, at a fixed location, partially in the region of the folding diverter 28. In this region, the folding diverter 28 is formed, by a reduction in width, as a lateral guide piece 31, in order to fix the folding flaps 18 in the folding position until the first tacking operation. The guide piece 31 has an aperture 32 (FIG. 6), through which the tacking jaw 30 or a projecting tacking crosspiece 33 passes until it butts against the end wall 16 or base wall 17 in order to transmit heat and pressure in a limited-surface-area region (tacking). The guide piece 31 is of angled design, as seen in cross section, and therefore the pack 10 is supported on the underside by way of a horizontal limb. The path portion 21 is also designed such that the relatively narrow belt 25 is supported by an elongate path plate 34, with a central depression for the strand of the lower belt 25 and with lateral supporting crosspieces 35, on which the pack rests by way of peripheral surface regions.

The first tacking jaw 30 is followed by a further tacking mechanism for the sideways directed closure flaps 19, that is to say by a (relatively long) tacking bar 36. The latter is dimensioned such that, in one operating cycle, it can act on two packs 10 following one after the other (at a distance apart). The tacking bar 36 supplements or completes the tacking in the region of the folding flaps 19. The operating surface of the tacking bar 36 is of appropriate design, in the present case with a convex tacking surface 37. The lateral folding flaps 19, following this processing operation, are fixed to a sufficient extent.

The tacking of the folding flaps 19 coincides with a (first) shrink-wrapping treatment. The large-surface-area free pack side, that is to say the upwardly oriented front wall 12 (or rear wall 13), is subjected to the action of a surface-area shrink-wrapping mechanism, that is to say of a heating plate 38. The latter can be moved up and down (with very small amplitudes). Heat in the region of the shrink-wrapping temperature is transmitted during the brief full-surface-area abutment against the pack 10. The heating plate 38 is provided with an aperture or groove 39 on the underside, in the region of the tear-open strip 20, and therefore the latter is not subjected to heat.

Following the tacking and shrink-wrapping station 29, the packs, with the folding flaps of the outer wrapper 11 fixed to a sufficient extent, pass into the region of a further processing station—in the present case by continued transportation by means of the lower belt 25. An assembly station 40 serves for forming groups or units made up of a plurality of originally successively transported packs 10. In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, in each case four packs 10 form such a processing unit. It is also the case that the packs 10, in the region of the assembly station 40, are transported transversely in relation to the incoming conveying direction, in the present case in the upward direction. For this purpose, the packs 10 are removed from the common belt 25 and transported further by other conveyors.

The present assembly station 40 has a plurality of vertical conveyors, that is to say in each case pairs of vertical belts 41, 42. In each case two mutually opposite vertical belts 41, 42 are assigned to a pack 10 or to a series of (cyclically) upwardly transported packs 10. Each vertical belt 41, 42 is guided via upper and lower deflecting rollers 43 (with the drive at the bottom). It is also the case that the belts 41, 42 have crosspiece-like protrusions 44, 45 in the form of drives for the packs 10. The pack 10 which is to be transported is gripped by the protrusions 44, 45 on the underside and on the upper side, to be precise in each case in a peripheral region adjacent to the end wall 16 and base wall 17. The vertical belts 41, 42 and the protrusions 44, 45 have a smaller transverse dimension than the corresponding dimension (width) of the packs 10, and therefore at least the side walls 14, 15 of the packs 10 are fully exposed on either side of the belts 41, 42.

The vertical belts 41, 42 are driven together, in cyclic fashion. The conveying movement of the packs by the lower belt 25 is coordinated with the movement of the vertical belts 41, 42 such that, once a number of packs 10 (four) have been introduced into the region of the vertical conveyor (FIG. 8), the vertical belts 41, 42 are moved by one cycle, as a result of which the packs 10 are raised off from the belt 25 and fed to a first processing station in the region of the elevator. Processing takes place during the standstill, and therefore four packs 10 can be processed simultaneously, while the same number is fed by the belt 25 in the lower plane, to be precise in conveying cycles of the belt 25 which correspond in each case to the distances between individual packs 10, and therefore four conveying cycles are necessary in order to provide the appropriate number of packs for being received by the elevator.

In particular the side walls 14, 15 are processed in the region of the assembly station 40, to be precise in each case the (four) packs 10 of a single unit simultaneously. In a (lower) shrink-wrapping station 46, a strip-like heater 47 gives rise to a shrink-wrapping operation of the side walls 14, 15. In the present case, just the folding-flap-free side wall 15 is subjected to shrink-wrapping heat. A support is provided opposite, in the region of the side wall 14. In the present case, the support is a movable supporting mechanism, that is to say a (short-stroke) cylinder 48, which pushes the pack 10 against the fixed heater 47 for the shrink-wrapping process. This operation takes place at the same time, in the region of the shrink-wrapping station 46, for all the (four) packs located in the same horizontal plane.

Thereafter, the vertical belts 41, 42 are moved into the next operating station, that is to say into a (first) sealing station 49. Here, the folding flaps 18 are connected to one another by sealing in the region of the side wall 14. A special feature resides in the fact that the sealing operation is split up into at least two successive steps. Elongate sealing bodies 50 having a convex sealing surface, for example as in the case of the tacking bar 36, are active in the sealing station 49. The resulting cross-sectional shape of the sealing body 50 gives rise to a central region of the surface of the side wall 14 being subjected to the necessary (sealing) pressure, wherein the longitudinal edges of the pack remain essentially free of pressure. It is likewise the case that a (short-stroke) cylinder 48 is arranged opposite the sealing body 50, and therefore the packs 10 are pushed against fixed sealing mechanisms.

In a further (upper) sealing station 51, a second sealing step is carried out, in the region of the flexible-tube flaps 18. An elongate sealing body 52 is formed with an essentially planar sealing surface and dimensioned such that the side walls 14 are covered over their full surface area or beyond the same. It is also the case that this embodiment of sealing bodies 52 is assigned a (short-stroke) cylinder 48 in each case.

Accordingly, the assembly station 40 is equipped with three operating stations 46, 49, 51, wherein, in each of these stations, simultaneously a plurality of—in the present case four—packs 10 are processed during a standstill phase, the latter lasting approximately four times as long as a standstill phase in the region where the packs 10 are supplied (belt 25). The operation of the assembly station 40 is set up such that the packs 10 are transported further at a distance apart from one another, in particular with the previous relative positioning in the form of a unit being maintained in the process. Accordingly, the packs 10 are spaced apart from one another within the unit and from the packs of the preceding and subsequent units.

Packs 10 sealed to completion in the region of the side wall 14 are guided into a removal station 53 by a further conveying cycle of the vertical belts 41, 42. In said removal station, the packs 10, located horizontally one beside the other, are received by a removal conveyor, an upper belt 54. The latter is designed in a manner analogous to the lower belt 25, including the drivers 26, 27. One special feature, however, resides in the fact that the upper belt 54 comprises two correspondingly configured individual belts 55, 56. The packs 10 are thus gripped in each case by two drivers 26, 27 at a distance apart from one another and conveyed out of the region of the vertical belts 41, 42 (FIG. 7). A further special feature resides in the fact that appropriate transporting movement of the upper belt 54 causes the (four) packs 10 held in the removal station 53 to be transported away simultaneously. Accordingly, the conveying cycle of the upper belt 54 corresponds to the dimensioning of a unit made up of the packs 10 transported away. The packs are gripped between the associated vertical belts 41, 42, by drivers 26, 27 of the upper belt 54 or of the individual belts 55, 56, and conveyed simultaneously out of the region of the vertical belts 41, 42 in the transverse direction. Gaps between the vertical belts 41, 42 are bridged by horizontal supporting plates 65.

Following the assembly station 40, the packs 10 are fed, along the path portion 22, to further treatment stations, to be precise to a combined sealing and shrink-wrapping station 57 immediately following the assembly station. In the present case, therefore, during each operating or conveying cycle, four packs 10 are set down in the region of said station 57. Here, the packs 10 have different pack sides processed during a (relatively long) standstill phase. The packs 10 rest on (lower) heat-discharging plates 58, which give rise to a shrink-wrapping treatment of lower large-surface-area pack sides—rear wall 13. The heat-discharging plates 58 are dimensioned such that at least the entire pack surface is covered (FIG. 9). The heat-discharging plates 58 also serve for bearing the packs 10 during transportation, wherein the packs 10 slide on the heat-discharging plates 58. The heat-discharging plates 58 can be moved up and down, that is to say, for carrying out a shrink-wrapping cycle, they can be moved upwards in order to generate a slight amount of increased abutment pressure against the packs 10. The heat-discharging plate 58 preferably extends over the entire length of the station 57, that is to say over a length corresponding to (in the present case) four packs 10.

Further pack surfaces, that is to say sideways directed regions—end wall 16, base wall 17—, are processed in the sealing and shrink-wrapping station 57. The task here is to seal the complex folding flaps 19. A first step sees the action of sealing crosspieces 59 with a convex sealing surface 60, analogous to the tacking bar 36 (FIG. 6). Accordingly, inner surface regions are subjected to thermal sealing. The station 57 is designed such that a plurality of (four) packs 10 are processed simultaneously, here by in each case two sealing crosspieces 59 corresponding to the dimensioning of two packs 10.

A subsequent transfer station 61 serves for transferring the transportation of the packs 10 from the upper belt 54 to a lower belt, that is to say to a final conveyor 62. The latter comprises an individual belt, largely corresponding to the lower belt 25. The transfer of the packs 10 from the feeding belt 54 to the continuing belt 62 is carried out in a manner analogous to the examples in EP 2 019 783 B1. The incoming packs, during a conveying cycle of the upper belt 54, are received one after the other by the belt of the final conveyor 62 and transported further, with the movement characteristics—in the present case four packs 10 per conveying cycle—being maintained in the process.

The transfer station 61 is of specific design for this purpose. The heat-discharging plates 58 of the station 57 terminate here. In the region of the transfer station 61, the packs 10 rest on a path plate 66 which follows the heat-discharging plates 58. Said path plate 66, at least in the region of a first sub-station 63—dimensioned in accordance with two successive packs 10—serves as a bearing means for the packs 10. Following this, that is to say in the region of a following sub-station 64, the packs 10 rest on lateral path crosspieces 67, between which the belt of the final conveyor 62 is guided (FIGS. 10 and 11). Up to the first sub-station 63, the packs are transported by the upper belt 54; at least from the sub-station 64 onward, the final conveyor 62 performs the transporting function. However, a conveying cycle of a plurality of (four) packs 10 remains.

It is also the case that, in the region of the transfer station 61, the packs 10 are treated during the standstill phase. Lateral sealing crosspieces 68 complete the operation of sealing the folding flaps 19 of the sideways directed pack walls 16, 17. The sealing crosspieces 68 are designed with planar sealing surfaces 69, which have their full surface area butting against the pack walls 16, 17 and preferably project beyond the same.

A further conveying cycle of the final conveyor 62 moves the packs 10 into the region of a final-treatment station 70. It is also the case that this station 70 is geared to the dimensions of a unit made up of a plurality of (four) packs 10. The packs rest on the path crosspieces 67. A (continuous, single-piece) heat-discharging plate 71 is active on the upper side, and subjects the upper sides of the packs 10, in the present case the front wall 12, to a shrink-wrapping treatment. The heat-discharging plate 71 is dimensioned such that it projects beyond the surfaces of the packs 10. The heat-discharging plate 71, which can be moved up and down, butts against the packs 10 during the standstill phase.

Also active are lateral sealing crosspieces 72, which are moved once again up to the end wall 16 and base wall 17 in order to complete the sealing of the folding flaps 19. The sealing crosspieces 72 are designed with convex or curved sealing surfaces 60.

FIGS. 12 to 14 illustrate a modified embodiment of the technology of the present invention. The first path portion 21 of the apparatus may correspond to the embodiment described above. The same applies to the assembly station 40. In the region of the following path portion 22, a larger number of processing stations are set up, to be precise also for treating special pack shapes, that is to say those with contoured pack edges. The latter may be designed in the form of round edges 73 or of an oblique edge 74. It is possible here for all four pack edges to correspond to one another or—as illustrated—to be different. The task is to apply the shrink-wrapping treatment of the outer wrapper 11 in the case of such packs 10 to the specially configured pack edges 73, 74 as well.

The pack edges 73, 74 are subjected to a shrink-wrapping treatment in a separate operating cycle. Special shrink-wrapping plates 75, 76 are provided for this purpose and are used in shrink-wrapping stations for the pack edges, that is to say in edge stations 77, 78.

The special (edge-) shrink-wrapping plates 75, 76 have edge crosspieces 79, 80 which are assigned to each pack edge to be treated and which are fitted on a carrier, that is to say a carrier plate 81, 82, in the form of upwardly or downwardly projecting ribs in a number which corresponds to the number of (four) packs 10 which are to be treated simultaneously. Each of the edge crosspieces 79, 80, at the free end, has a forming edge 83, 84 corresponding to the pack edge, that is to say in the form of a quarter-circle (for treating round edges 73) or in the form of a bevel for treating oblique edges 74. At least the edge crosspieces 79, 80 are heated in accordance with the shrink-wrapping temperature.

The edge-shrink-wrapping mechanisms 75, 76 are coordinated with the operation of the apparatus, that is to say they are arranged, in a manner corresponding to the arrangement of the belt conveyor, beneath (FIG. 13) or above (FIG. 14) the movement path of the packs 10. The shrink-wrapping plates 75, 76 can be moved up and down such that, in an upper position, the packs can be moved freely by the respective belt 54, 62.

At least in the region of the edge stations 77, 78, the packs 10 are supported on the side which is directed toward the shrink-wrapping mechanism 75, 76. According to FIG. 13, path plates 85 in the form of a bearing means for the packs are arranged on the underside, to be precise they are arranged in portions or provided with interruptions, and therefore the upright edge crosspieces 79 can be located, and moved, between the path plates 85. In the case of the shrink-wrapping plates 76 being arranged on the upper side (FIG. 14), plate-like supporting mechanisms 86 are arranged at a fixed location at least in the region between the edge crosspieces 80 assigned to a pack 10, said supporting mechanisms fixing the packs 10 during the shrink-wrapping treatment and during movement of the shrink-wrapping plate 76. It is also the case that supporting mechanisms for the belt 54 or 62 are arranged at least in the region of the edge stations 77, 78, that is to say an upper plate 87 is arranged above the belt 54 in FIG. 13 and a lower plate 88 is arranged beneath the belt 62 in FIG. 14. The two edge stations 77, 78 are geared to the treatment of multiple packs 10 during one processing cycle, this being based, in the present case, on four packs per operating cycle.

The region of the path portion 22 also differs from the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 in the creation of a larger number of processing stations. The packs 10 are transported away, in the manner described, out of the region of the assembly station 40 by the upper belt 54 (which extends over a longer conveying region), to be precise likewise in pack units made up of a plurality of, for example four, packs 10 at a distance apart from one another. The assembly station 40 is followed by a sealing and shrink-wrapping station 57, which may be designed in a manner corresponding to FIGS. 5 and 9. In this region, accordingly, sealing operations are carried out on the sideways directed pack surfaces and the underside is subjected to shrink-wrapping treatments. The station 57 comprises a single pack unit (four packs 10).

This is followed by the already described (first) edge station 77, which, as far as transportation of the packs 10 is concerned, is covered by the upper belt 54. The edge station 77 is followed by the transfer station 61, which is designed, and operates, in the manner described (FIGS. 5 and 10).

The packs 10 then pass into a completion region. The latter, in the present case, comprises two stations, that is to say a final-treatment station 70 corresponding to FIG. 1 and also FIGS. 5 and 11. The task is to provide for shrink-wrapping treatment on the upper side and lateral sealing. The unit made up of packs 10 is then fed (in a further conveying cycle) to the already described edge station 78. The completed packs are set down on a removal conveyor 89, which feeds the packs for further processing, in particular for the production of multipacks.

The sealing and shrink-wrapping mechanisms are designed in a manner which is known in principle. Elongate heating cartridges 90 of known construction are arranged in the elongate sealing jaws or sealing crosspieces 36, 50, 52, 59, 68, 72. Plate-like heat-discharging mechanisms 38, 58, 71 have a plurality of, in the present case two, evenly distributed heating cartridges 90. The movable mechanisms can be adjusted mechanically by actuating transmissions of appropriate design in each case. If, in an operating station, for example in the tacking and shrink-wrapping station 29, a plurality of mechanisms have to be actuated approximately at the same time, a common actuating transmission is provided for moving both the tacking bar 36 and the heating plate 38.

A special feature of the technology of the present invention resides in the fact that the packs 10 fed individually in cyclic fashion—corresponding to the distance between the individual packs 10—preferably along a conveying path are functionally combined to form a unit made up of a plurality of successive packs 10, without the relative positioning of the latter being changed, and subsequently, for each of these units, the packs 10 are treated simultaneously during a standstill phase of the unit or pack group. In the present case, the units are formed in the region of the assembly station 40. The latter may also be designed such that the packs 10 or the units formed from a plurality of (four) packs 10 are transported further, and treated in the manner described, without the conveying direction being changed.

LIST OF DESIGNATIONS

10 Pack

11 Outer wrapper

12 Front wall

13 Rear wall

14 Side wall

15 Side wall

16 End wall

17 Base wall

18 Flexible-tube flap

19 Closure flap

20 Tear-open strip

21 Path portion

22 Path portion

23 Folding turret

24 Tacking mechanism

25 Lower belt

26 Driver

27 Driver

28 Folding diverter

29 Tacking and shrink-wrapping station

30 Tacking jaw

31 Guide piece

32 Aperture

33 Tacking crosspiece

34 Path plate

35 Supporting crosspiece

36 Tacking bar

37 Tacking surface

38 Heating plate

39 Groove

40 Assembly station

41 Vertical belt

42 Vertical belt

43 Deflecting roller

44 Protrusion

45 Protrusion

46 Shrink-wrapping station

47 Heating body

48 Cylinder

49 Sealing station

50 Sealing body

51 Sealing station

52 Sealing body

53 Removal station

54 Upper belt

55 Individual belt

56 Individual belt

57 Sealing and shrink-wrapping station

58 Heat-discharging plate

59 Sealing crosspiece

60 Sealing surface

61 Transfer station

62 Final conveyor

63 Sub-station

64 Sub-station

65 Supporting plate

66 Path plate

67 Path crosspiece

68 Sealing crosspiece

69 Sealing surface

70 Final-treatment station

71 Heat-discharging plate

72 Sealing crosspiece

73 Round edge

74 Oblique edge

75 Shrink-wrapping plate

76 Shrink-wrapping plate

77 Edge station

78 Edge station

79 Edge crosspiece

80 Edge crosspiece

81 Carrying plate

82 Carrying plate

83 Forming edge

84 Forming edge

85 Path plate

86 Supporting mechanism

87 Upper plate

88 Lower plate

89 Removal conveyor

90 Heating cartridge 

1. A method of producing (cuboidal) packs (10) having an outer wrapper (11) made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, in particular a cigarette pack of the hinge-lid-box type, wherein folding flaps (18, 19) of the outer wrapper (11) are connected to one another by thermal tacking and (subsequent) sealing and the outer wrapper (11) is subjected to shrink-wrapping treatment by in particular surface-area heat-discharging mechanisms in the region of mutually opposite surfaces or walls of the pack (10) or outer wrapper (11)—in the case of a hinge-lid box (for cigarettes) a front wall (12) and rear wall (13), on the one hand, and (upright) side walls (14, 15), on the other hand—comprising subjecting surfaces of the packs (10) or walls of the outer wrapper (11) individually or in pairs, simultaneously or one after the other, to heat and pressure for sealing purposes and/or shrink-wrapping treatment, wherein some walls of the outer wrapper (11) are subjected to a sealing treatment using heat and pressure and the other walls of the outer wrapper (11) are subjected—approximately—at the same time to heat and pressure for shrink-wrapping treatment.
 2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the steps of: a) folding flaps (18, 19) of the outer wrapper (11) are fixed by tacking—thermal sealing using small sealing surfaces—in the region of overlaps (immediately) following production; b) during the operation of tacking sideways directed folding flaps (19), in particular in the region of an end wall (16) and of a base wall (17) of the outer wrapper (11), selected pack surfaces, that is to say upwardly and/or downwardly directed large pack surfaces—front wall (12) and/or rear wall (13)—are subjected to heat for the shrink-wrapping process; c) thereafter, further pack surfaces, in particular side walls (14, 15), of the outer wrapper are subjected to heat and pressure for sealing and/or shrink-wrapping purposes; and d) then, folding flaps (18, 19) of the outer wrapper (11) are definitively sealed.
 3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the operation of sealing folding flaps (18, 19) is carried out in at least two steps, with the folding flaps (18, 19) being affected differently in each case, in particular such that, in a first step, an inner region of a surface of the pack (10) (that can be deformed by curvature) is subjected to heat and pressure, and then the entire surface, including peripheral pack edges, is subjected to heat and pressure.
 4. A method of treating (cuboidal) packs (10), in particular cigarette packs of the hinge-lid-box type, having an outer wrapper (11) made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, of which the folding flaps (18, 19) are connected to one another by thermal sealing and of which the walls are subjected to the action of in particular surface-area heat-discharging mechanisms for shrink-wrapping treatment, wherein the packs (10) are transported individually, one after the other in a row and at a distance apart from one another, comprising the steps of: a) during a first phase of transportation, the packs (10) are transported in cyclic fashion, with the distance between the packs (10) being maintained in the process; b) in an assembly station (40), a plurality of successive packs (10) are combined to form a unit—preferably with the distances between the packs (10) of a single unit and the distances between successive units being maintained in the process—in respect of transportation and treatment; c) the unit made up of a plurality of, in particular four, packs (10) is transported in a joint conveying cycle in each case in the region of the assembly station (40) and/or following the same; and d) while the packs (10) of a single unit are at a standstill, these packs are processed preferably simultaneously and in the same way, that is to say they are subjected to pressure and/or heat for tacking and/or sealing purposes and/or shrink-wrapping treatment.
 5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein: a) in the assembly station (40), the units made up of a plurality of packs (10) are transported further transversely to the supply direction, in particular in the vertical direction and at a distance apart from one another; b) during the transversely directed, in particular upwardly directed, cyclic transportation of the units, a plurality of processing stations (46, 49, 51) arranged one beside the other or one above the other provide for processing operations to be carried out on respectively all the packs (10) of a single unit, in particular sealing and/or shrink-wrapping treatment in the region of transversely directed side walls (14, 15) of the packs (10); and c) once the processing operations have been carried out in the region of the assembly station (40), the packs (10) are transported away, and fed in particular to further processing stations, with the unit being maintained in the process.
 6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the packs (10) are fed individually one after the other, at a distance apart, to the assembly station (40) along a first, rectilinear (horizontal) path portion (21) and, following the assembly station (40), are transported further, in the form of units made up of a plurality of packs (10), along a following (horizontal) path portion (22), wherein the latter is offset vertically, in a manner corresponding to the operating height of the assembly station (40), in relation to the path portion (21).
 7. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein at least three processing stations (46, 49, 51) are arranged (one above the other) in the assembly station (40), wherein, preferably in a first (lower) processing station (46), the flap-free side wall (15) is subjected to a shrink-wrapping treatment and, in further (subsequent) stations (49, 51), the flexible-tube flaps (18) are connected to one another by sealing.
 8. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein a plurality of operating stations for sealing sideways directed walls—end wall (16), base wall (17)—and for the shrink-wrapping treatment of the upwardly or downwardly directed front wall and/or rear wall (13) are arranged in the region of the path portion (22) which follows the assembly station (40).
 9. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein, in the case of packs (10)—hinge-lid boxes for cigarettes—with complex, contoured pack edges, in particular with round edges (73) and/or oblique edges (74), surfaces in the region of said pack edges (73, 74) are subjected separately to a shrink-wrapping treatment by the transmission of heat and surface-area pressure, preferably in a region of the path portion (22) which follows the assembly station (40), by means of special shrink-wrapping mechanisms—edge crosspieces (79, 80).
 10. An apparatus for producing (cuboidal) packs (10) having an outer wrapper (11) made of sealable shrink-wrapping film, in particular (cigarette) packs of the hinge-lid-box type, wherein the packs (10), with folded outer wrapper (11), pass through operating stations for tacking folding flaps (18, 19), for sealing the same and for shrink-wrapping the film, in each case using tacking mechanisms, sealing mechanisms and (surface area) heat-discharging mechanisms, comprising: a) following a folding subassembly—folding turret (23)—for the outer wrapper (11), the packs (10) can be transported individually and at a distance apart from one another in cyclic fashion—by belt conveyors (25)—along a first path portion (21); b) an assembly station (40), which follows the path portion (21), serves for forming groups or units made up of a plurality of packs (10) arising one after the other and at a distance apart from one another; c) each unit made up of a plurality of packs can be transported in the assembly station (40), and following this in the region of a further path portion (22), in the form of a unit—in the case of an appropriate conveying cycle—preferably with the relative positioning of the packs (10) being maintained in the process; and d) in the assembly station (40) and/or in the region of the following path portion (22), the packs (10) of a single unit can be subjected simultaneously to the action of appropriately designed and/or dimensioned sealing or shrink-wrapping mechanisms.
 11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the units which are formed in the assembly station (40) and are each made up of a plurality of packs (10) can be conveyed in cyclic fashion in the vertical direction, in particular by vertical belts (41, 42) which are assigned to each pack (10) of a single unit and grip the packs (10) in a region directed towards an end wall (16) and base wall (17) of the packs (10) such that at least side walls (14, 15) of the packs (10) are exposed in the assembly station (40), wherein sealing and/or shrink-wrapping mechanisms act on each pack (10) in the region of an operating station (46, 49, 53) of the assembly station (40) during the standstill.
 12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein, in the assembly station (40), in a first (lower) operating station—shrink-wrapping station (46)—, shrink-wrapping mechanisms, that is to say elongate heaters (47), act on flap-free side walls (15) of the packs (10), and in that, in the following operating stations—sealing station (49), sealing station (51)—these being active above the shrink-wrapping station (46), elongate sealing bodies (50, 52) are active on the side wall (14) which has the flexible tube flaps (18).
 13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein, in the operating stations (46, 49, 51), movable supporting mechanisms, in particular (short-stroke) cylinders (48), are applied to the side wall (14, 15) of each pack (10), the side wall being located opposite the processing mechanisms (47, 50, 52).
 14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: a) an (upper) conveying station (53) serves for transporting away the successively arriving units made up of a plurality of packs (10), with the distances between the packs (10) within a single unit being maintained in the process; b) the units are transported away transversely to the conveying direction of the vertical belts (41, 42) of the assembly station (40) by a removal conveyor, preferably by an upper belt (54) with drivers (26, 27) for gripping and fixing each pack (10) with a single unit on the upper side thereof, wherein transportation preferably takes place with conveying cycles corresponding to the number of packs of a single unit; c) the upper belt (54) can convey the packs (10), along the (horizontal) path portion (22), through a sealing and shrink-wrapping station (57), in which preferably downwardly directed large surfaces of the packs (10)—front wall (12) or rear wall (13)—are subjected to a shrink-wrapping treatment by heat-discharging plates (58) and folding flaps (19) or sideways directed walls—end wall (16), base wall (17)—are subjected to a sealing treatment by sealing crosspieces (59); d) the sealing and shrink-wrapping station (57) is followed by further operating stations for treating the packs (10), preferably following a transfer station (61), that is to say a final-treatment station (70), preferably with a heat-discharging plate (71) arranged on the upper side for subjecting upwardly directed large-surface-area walls—front wall (12) or rear wall (13)—to a shrink-wrapping treatment and with lateral sealing crosspieces (22) for the (final) sealing of folding flaps (19) of sideways directed walls (16, 17); and e) the upper belt (54) can feed the packs (10), following the sealing and shrink-wrapping station (57), to a transfer station (61), in which the packs, preferably in the form of a unit made up of a plurality of packs, can be gripped by a final conveyor (62) in order to continue transportation, wherein the final conveyor (62), preferably beneath the movement path of the packs (10), is designed in the form of an endless belt with drivers (26, 27) for the packs (10).
 15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein, for producing packs with contoured pack edges, in particular with round edges (73) and/or oblique edges (74), in at least one separate processing station—edge station (77, 78)—, there are heated mechanisms, in particular elongate shrink-wrapping plates (75, 76) with protrusions—edge crosspiece (79, 80)—provided for the shrink-wrapping treatment of the round edges (73) and/or oblique edges (74), said mechanisms or plates having a forming edge (83, 84) which is geared to the shape of the pack edges and butts against the same for shrink-wrapping purposes, wherein preferably two operating stations, that is to say edge stations (77, 78), are set up with shrink-wrapping plates (75, 76) for the shrink-wrapping treatment of the pack edges (73, 74), wherein the shrink-wrapping plates (75, 76) are mounted such that, depending on the position of the pack edges (73, 74) which are to be treated, they can be moved up and down above or beneath the movement path of the packs.
 16. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the operation of sealing folding flaps (18, 19) is carried out in at least two steps, with the folding flaps (18, 19) being affected differently in each case, in particular such that, in a first step, an inner region of a surface of the pack (10) (that can be deformed by curvature) is subjected to heat and pressure, and then the entire surface, including peripheral pack edges, is subjected to heat and pressure.
 17. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein, in the case of packs (10)—hinge-lid boxes for cigarettes—with complex, contoured pack edges, in particular with round edges (73) and/or oblique edges (74), surfaces in the region of said pack edges (73, 74) are subjected separately to a shrink-wrapping treatment by the transmission of heat and surface-area pressure, preferably in a region of the path portion (22) which follows the assembly station (40), by means of special shrink-wrapping mechanisms—edge crosspieces (79, 80). 